Mudstock
by SeymoreTheClown
Summary: Mudstock is the greatest music festival of the summer, and Corey got him and his band a spot preforming together. It just seems that Corey cannot finish the lyrics for their song. So, Laney helps him relax, in an attempt to get his creative juices flowing. One thing is for sure: they're spending a lot more time together.
1. Chapter 1

I came across this show during one of my attempts to pull an all-nighter, even though I had college the next day and an assignment due.

Disclaimer: I do not own Grojband.

Chapter 1 - The Band

All teens want a place to hang out, and for these four friends that place was a garage. Laney, Kin, and Kon were all in different places around the garage. Kon was sitting behind his drums - rapidly tapping on the drum's skin with his drumsticks. Kin was tinkering with some wires, nuts, and bolts at a desk in the corner of the garage. The occasional maniacal laugh emphasised his whole mad scientist vibe. Finally there was Laney, sprawled across an old sofa that had been seen better days. Her body was contorted in ways to avoid the hazard of sofa springs poking her; which sitting up straight would have solved. It was obvious they were bored.

The door of the garage opened with a loud metallic clank, startling the teens.

"Guys, you know the new song?" the last friend, and actual owner of the garage, Corey, entered.

"The one without any lyrics." said Laney.

"Yeah, we're going to have to practice that one a LOT more."

"Could you explain why?"

"I, Corey, the awesome, have landed Grojband a gig at Mudstock!" the rest of the teens gasped at the sudden news.

"Mudstock?!" asked Kin, "The most bad-ass show this side of summer. That Mudstock?!"

"Tell me how great I am." Corey said with a small, smug smile adorning his face.

"It would be great if our song had some actual lyrics." Laney deadpans.

"Don't worry about that now, fella." He says as he wraps an arm around her, "Let's just focus on totally rocking right now." Laney was more than a little flustered that Corey had an arm around her but less so that she was called "fella".

Loud stomping came from the adjoining room until an older girl burst through the door, accompanied by another, more submissive, girl.

"Stop being so loud! I don't know what's worse: your music or just you guys being happy. Laney frowned at the "guys" part. The pink haired girl was annoyed, for no apparent reason, and the other girl seemed more intimidated than the younger teens.

"Um, Trina? Are we still going to the mall?" She asked sheepishly.

"Of course we are, Mina. Just shut up and hold my purse." At this, the two girls climbed into an overly pink car, then started the ignition with a furious turn of the keys. The car rumbled into life, and they sped out of the garage - almost hitting the neighbour's cat sitting in the driveway.

"Who spilled sour soy milk in her cereal?" asked Kin.

"She's always like that in the morning... And the afternoon... And... She's always like that." Corey sighed.

"Now that she's gone can we practice our _lyric_-_less_ song? My fingers are itching to play my bass." said Laney.

"Sure, why not?" Laney picked up her bass, which was a little too small for her, and Corey couldn't help but smirk. Luckily, Laney didn't notice this as she was too busy flicking her fringe out of her face and lining up her fingers for the first few notes. The amp boomed when Laney pluck a string, and the tools Kin were using on the desk began to vibrate dangerously close to the edge. Kon hadn't said anything in a while, which the others thought of as strange, so all the members looked over at the drum set. No boy was too be found. Suddenly, the lights went out, and bursting through the same door was a figure. As the lights came back on, they realised it was Kon... With a lot of cheese in his grasp, and some shoved in his mouth.

"Drf solf!"

"Translation?" asked Laney.

"Using our twin power of sharing minds, I can safely say that he said 'drum solo!"

Kon began, loudly but rhythmically, drumming.

-oOoOo-

As evening rolled around, the band were short of two twins. Corey was sitting on the sofa with a pencil, and some paper in his hands, trying to make words appear.

"Still no luck with those lyrics then? Laney had perched herself next to Corey on the old sofa, leaning over to look at the paper covered in crossed out words and messy handwriting.

"It's just the one lyric, actually. I can't seem to find the right word to end this verse." Corey huffs, and plays with the hair sticking out of his hat. Laney leans in closer. He turns to face her, and can't help but notice that way she's sitting and how it emphasises her curves. He gulps as quietly as he could. Laney stops looking at the paper, as she catches the boy looking at her. For a moment their gazes meet but they abruptly turn away.

"I thought you would have left with the twins. I mean, the sun is going down, and it's going to get dark soon." Corey says, trying to change the subject.

"My folks aren't home just yet. So, I thought I'd chill here a little longer... If that's cool with you, that is." Laney had started to concentrate on the objects hanging on the wall, in an attempt to hide the reddening of her cheeks.

"Yeah, no. That's cool." The silence that hung around them was deafening. "I'm going to make some drinks. Do you want anything?"

"No, I'm good." When Corey left the room, Laney let out the breath she didn't realise she was holding. After that, she got up, and started to wonder around the, now empty, garage. She trailed her finger across multiple surfaces as she walked, focusing more on the objects hanging on the wall. Even though it was the same stuff that had been there since the first time Laney had visited, it seemed all the more interesting today. She could hear glasses clinking together in the next room, and she wondered how much time she'd have to herself. She wiped her dust covered finger on her jeans, before sitting back on the sofa. The springs under the fabric poked into the back of her legs but before she could re-adjust herself, Corey came back in the room holding two glasses, and a large bottle of soda. It was nice that he had brought her a drink, even though she didn't ask for anything. Laney had always liked that about him; it made him a good friend.

The silence that had lingered in the room was broken by the sound of carbon dioxide escaping from the bottle as the seal on the cap was broken.

"So, about the lyrics…" Laney started.

"Yeah, I don't want to keep relying on Trina's diary. It's just so difficult to write good songs." he sighed.

"You should take a break for a while. You know, just give yourself a chance to relax, and allow those creative juices to work their magic in their own time." she replied, giving him a warm smile.

"Yeah, guy. Let's relax. What'd you have in mind?" Laney had been put on the spot, and when she couldn't think of anything she noticed how close the two were sitting.

"I... think this is pretty nice..." Corey shuffled in his seat, and his leg brushed against hers. Another silence fell. They both felt a weird sensation that started in their legs but made its way through their bodies. Goosebumps had formed; the hairs on their necks stood on end.

A loud crash came from the next room, and it startled the two teens. Knocked out of their trance, Corey said, "That's weird. Trina's still out." He stood up from the sofa, and proceeded towards the door to the next room. Laney waited a few seconds before following him. The two teens pressed their ears to the door, in an attempt to hear more. Silence. Softly, Corey pushed on the door. Behind it was a girl, and she was picking up shards of broken glass.

"Ow." she mumbled.

"Mina?" asked Corey. The girl turned to face the two teens staring at her in the doorway.

"Oh, hey guys."

"What are you doing? And where's Trina?"

"Trina asked me to get her a soda but she didn't want to use any of the cups at the movies, so she told me to get some glasses from the kitchen."

"Didn't you guys leave like an hour ago? The movie's probably half through." Laney added, giving Mina a sympathetic smile.

"Yeah, it's on the other side of town, and Trina wouldn't let me use her car. So, it took a bit longer than usual to get here. I'm sorry, I didn't interrupt anything - did I?" The two teens made eye contact for the briefest of moments before looking back at Mina - their faces flushed with embarrassment.

"No…" the two said simultaneously. Laney noticed blood on some of the shards of glass. "Are you okay, Mina? It looks like you're bleeding."

"This…" looking down at her hand, "this is just a scratch." Corey climbs over the debris, and walks over to the kitchen counter. From the draws, he grabs a plastic box before walking back over to Mina.

"Here." Corey cups Mina's hand in his, and she showed him the cut on her palm. He softly sprays the wound with a small amount of disinfectant. Mina winces at the small stinging sensation, before looking up at the boy, now, bandaging her hand. No longer can she feel pain in her wounded hand. Instead, she feels the heat rising in her cheeks, and her glasses start to fog.

"Come on, let's help you clean up." Corey continued, and Mina smiled at him.

-oOoOo-

The next morning rolled around. The two girls had gone home the night before, whereas a more obnoxious one had returned.

"Corey!" shrieked Trina. Still in a daze from waking up moments before on the sofa in the garage, Corey replied.

"Wha-?"

"Just shut up for a second, seriously." She retorted. "Mina and I are going to the fair today to see _hunky _Nick Mallory, and I don't want your gross band to be there ruining things."

"Wait, the fair is today? Shoot, I'm late!" At this, Corey pushed past Trina and ran out of the garage.

"Hey, watch it!"

Down town, there was a fair going on - organised by Major Mellow. It was an event that occurred once a year but was well worth the wait. Laney - last night - came up with the idea of going to the fair, as a way for Corey to relax so he could work on the lyrics later.

Hurrying down the street, Corey, quite literally, bumped into Laney - who was waiting for him.

"Oof!" said Laney.

"Sorry! I'm not late, am I?" Laney looked at her watch but there was a hesitated response.

"... Not as late as you usually are. So, I guess you're improving." Laney replied with a small smile. "I just got here, myself."

"Well, we better get going. There's a lot to do."

"I don't think you have any right to tell me to hurry." Laney laughed.

It was a hot day. So when they arrived at the fair, the duo went to buy some drinks. At the concession stand they sold a variety of beverages - from fruity to fizzy, and some of them both. Laney wanted a strawberry flavoured juice, whereas Corey opted for something fizzy, and sugar-filled. While he went to pay, Laney sat on a nearby bench - shaded by a tree. She pretended to watch people as they walked by but she was really watching Corey. She didn't know how he could be wearing that hat in this heat. The heat was definitely affecting her because, before she knew it, Corey was walking towards her with the drinks in his hands.

"Catch." He tossed a carton at her, before sitting beside her on the bench. His can opened with a fizz, and he took four large gulps.

"You might want to slow down. You'll swallow the can, at this rate." Corey stopped to catch his breath. However, the soda wanted out. As soon as the can left his lips, the fizzy liquid dribbled out of his mouth and down onto his shirt.

"Well, that just happened." Corey said, looking down at the wet patch on his shirt. Laney giggled. "Hey Laney, is my hand cold?" without hesitating, Corey put the palm of his hand on her cheek, and Laney squealed. She playfully pushed his hand away.

"Don't do that!" Corey's hand was wet from the condensation on the can, and it left her cheek slightly wet too. She quickly finished her drink, so they could start walking around the fair.

They stopped to look at every stall that gave away prizes. One of those stalls had Panda bears, so Corey decided he was going to win one. The game was to knock down the cans, and boy did he want to knock down those cans.

"Why are you trying so hard to win one?" asked Laney, "We can just-"

"Shh, just wait one… second" Corey interrupted. After missing with first two shots, Corey put his full force into this last throw. Success! The cans clattered to the ground, and the girl working the stall handed him a medium-sized panda. As the panda traded hands, the girl gave Corey a small wink, before turning around to set up the cans again. He tossed the panda at Laney, "C'mon, let's keep moving." When she caught it, she brought the panda to her face. Oddly, there was a faint smell of cinnamon. She didn't think too much about it because Corey had already started walking off, so she followed him.

Laney felt weird about having asked him why he had been trying so hard to win the prize. A small part of her wanted Corey to have won the prize for her but Laney knew that he was too stubborn to give up trying to win. She sighed to herself.

"-hungry?"

"Huh, wha-?" Laney snapped back to reality.

"Are you hungry? There are some food stalls this way." He pointed into a crowd of people who were walking towards the centre of the fair.

"Yeah, sure. I could eat." Without thinking, Corey grabbed her wrist and led her into the sea of bodies. People bumped into each other, pushing and sometimes shoving. Being so small made it difficult for Laney to traverse the crowd but she was close to Corey. His grip wasn't tight,and it didn't hurt, but it was strong. Strong enough so they couldn't be separated. She tightly clutched the panda to her chest with her other free hand, while trying, hopelessly, to see where they were heading. As the crowd thinned, Laney no longer felt as claustrophobic; she could see something other than people's backs. What she saw was a long row of food stalls - lined up with mere feet between each one. Laney felt Corey's grip loosen. Although she was glad she to get her arm back, Laney was slightly disappointed when she felt the warmth of his hand leave her wrist. She quietly huffed in disappointment.

A loud boom echoed through the fair, and storm clouds started to form above them. Bolts of lightning illuminated the dark sky, accompanied by roaring winds and claps of thunder.

"What's going on?"

"You don't think its Trina, do you? We haven't done anything to her… today."

The sky started to weep. Rain and dirt mixed together into a thick sludge beneath them, and their feet started to sink into it. "C'mon, let's find somewhere with a roof." Corey led the way to a large marquee, this time without pulling Laney along. Inside the marquee was surprisingly warm. There was a thick smell of food sizzling in fryers, and children ran between the brightly coloured confectionary stands - it was like a miniature fairground.

"Is it weird that I expected it to be raining in here too?" Corey chuckled. Amidst the combination of grease, and sweat from the fair, a soft scent of cinnamon hung in the air. Laney's nose twitched as the smell found her.

"Waffles." she mumbled.

"What?"

This time it was Laney's turn to lead Corey. She suddenly grabbed his wrist, and pulled him through the tsunami of children. Before long, Corey found himself sitting in a crowded seating area while Laney shovelled waffles into her mouth.

"I, um, didn't realise you liked waffles so much." With plump hamster cheeks, Laney tried to respond but to no avail. Instead, Corey was met with muffled attempts of speech; Laney blushed. With a large gulp, she swallowed the waffles in her mouth.

"Sorry, I was just really hungry." Trina, drenched from the rain, burst into the marquee, with Mina trailing behind her.

"Ugh! Why did those two freaks have to be there? Nick Mallory was so totally going to kiss me, and junk!" Huffed Trina. She looked around for a table to sit on but there was only one table with any spaces - Corey's. "Move, Garbage-Band!" Trina sat herself next to Laney, as she couldn't stand being that close to Corey - so that left Mina with the seat next to him.

"Uh, hi Corey…" bumbled Mina. Laney and Trina both gave Mina a weird look but Corey didn't think anything of it.

"Oh, hey Mina." he replied. For some odd reason, Mina could feel her cheeks redden. With her arms in her lap, she looked down at her toes. Laney was still watching Mina's - sudden - weird behaviour but Trina was already got bored of it.

"Mina! Waffles!" At this, Mina quickly stumbled out of her seat, and she sped towards the waffle stand.

"Why are you sitting with us, Trina?"

"Duh, this is the best spot to look at hunky Nick Mallory." she lied. Nonetheless, her eyes fluttered. "Oh Nick!" she dashed off, leaving behind a cloud of smoke. Mina came back to the table with a stack of waffles with Trina nowhere to be found.

"Oh… She's gone." The two teens pointed to a nearby table where Trina was swooning over Nick, and Mina sighed. "I guess I'll just leave these waffles here. You don't have to eat them…" She put the waffles on the table - the thick maple syrup ran off the sides. Mina, then, hurriedly went over to Trina and Nick.

"That was unexpected…" added Laney.

"At least we got free waffles."

"Yeah…" Laney looked at the waffles apprehensively. One, because she was so full already, and two because Mina had been acting strange. She then looked at Corey - who seemed to be content with nibbling of the stack of waffles. Laney sighed.

"So Lanes, what do you want to do next?" asked Corey. Laney snapped back to reality. She had to think for a moment before making her suggestion.

"There is one thing I want to do with you but I'm not sure if it'd make you… uncomfortable…"

_A/N: Well, this is the first chapter. The next chapter will be the second, and so on. It took me far too long to write this chapter, I admit, but I had fun doing so. Isn't that what writing is supposed to be? :)_

_-STC_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Grojband.

Chapter 2 - Funfairs, Facepaint, and Fear

"Uncomfortable?" asked Corey. Laney, yet again, grabbed Corey by the wrist and dragged him from his seat.

Soon, the two teens were waiting in line behind a horde of people, ranging from old to young - cheerful to downright downers. "Lanes? Where are we?"

"You'll find out soon enough. Now hush." replied Laney. Her face wore an expression of excitement but also one of worry. Laney was, still, unsure if Corey would go with it when he found out what they were in line for. The queue was moving surprisingly quick, considering the sheer number of people there. This wasn't necessarily a good thing. As the people were moving faster, Laney and Corey were getting knocked about more frequently. There were a group of kids who dashed straight through the queue, trying to get to the other side, causing Laney to lose her balance. Her foot slipped in the mud as she tried to regain her footing. Luckily, Corey caught her mid fall. Laney's shirt had ridden up her back slightly. When Corey caught her, she felt the warmth of his fingertips on her bare skin. She fought back the urge to squeal at the sensation. Laney could feel goose bumps forming on her lower back - just under his fingers. The two teens looked at each other. Laney's grip on Corey's top, ever so slightly, tightened.

"Next!" called a female voice in front of them. The queue had shrunk dramatically, and they were next in line. Straightening themselves out, they stood up. The two of them walked forward, until they reached the lady at the stall, awkwardly avoiding eye contact.

"What do you want?" the lady asked in a raspy voice. Laney whispered into the lady's ear, and Corey gave her a quizzical look. The lady fell into a coughing fit, before continuing in her raspy voice, "You", pointing at Corey, "to the left." In front of him was a curtain - it's deep maroon colour was unnerving. He pushed the silky fabric aside, as he walked into the room behind it.

Laney had been waiting outside the stall for over ten minutes. It didn't take this long for hers to be finished, so she was wondering what was taking Corey so long. As if on cue, Corey emerged from behind the maroon curtain; he didn't look impressed. Laney waited for him to walk over to her, before quietly giggling.

"Really?" He sighed. As it happens, Corey didn't appreciate having his face painted to look like a rejected KISS member. Laney's giggling became more intense until she was almost crying. She, Corey had noticed, didn't look too bad as a panda. Laney usually wore enough eyeliner to give her panda eyes, so it wasn't too much of a change. However, there was an air of cuteness in this new look, and Corey liked it. He wasn't too keen on the way they had put her hair into buns to look like panda ears. While she was still... Wetting herself, Corey unwound the mounds of hair on Laney's head - making it fall into a more natural style. Laney was taken aback at him messing with her hair but didn't say anything. Instead, she was trying to stop her heart from beating out of her chest from how close Corey was standing to her.

"There!" He exclaimed. Undoing the buns left her hair slightly scruffy but, somehow, made it look sexier. To finish his masterpiece, Corey lightly bopped her on the nose as if it was his signature.

"I-is it my turn?" Stuttered Laney.

"What was that, Lanes?"

"Nothing. Never mind." She let out a sigh of relief. Perhaps it was better that he didn't hear her. Otherwise, Laney might have fainted.

"You want to take a picture? I don't think the _beautiful _art on my face will last the entire day." He chuckled. She honestly thought that Corey wanted her heart to fail. She fumbled for her phone in her pocket, at which Corey took it from her. Then, he put his arm around her and pulled Laney close. She was quite a bit shorter than Corey, so Laney ended up pressed against his chest. Corey held the phone above them to take a top down photo. Laney only had one foot on the ground because of the way Corey was holding her but she didn't mind. By being cradled by him, she was able to inhale the scent of his shirt. With the amount of stress she'd put on her own heart, Laney could be called masochistic.

"Smile, Lanes."

-oOoOo-

People had been leaving the marquee for a while now, and the two teens decided to do the same. Apparently, it had stopped raining - which was good news for their facepaint. The ground was still soft under their feet. However, a lot more attractions were now open. They overheard Mayor Mellow giving one of his rhyming speech, so Corey and Laney headed towards the main stage.

"Now it's stopped raining, you can quit your complaining! You over there! It's time to enjoy the fair!" He exclaimed.

"How does that guy always make his sentences rhyme?" said Corey. Laney hadn't been paying attention. Her focus was on the phone in her hand. She hadn't stopped staring at the picture of two of them; she'd made it her wallpaper.

"-Lanes?" The feeling of a hand on her shoulder brought her back from her daydream.

"Hm?" She asked, still a little bit hazy.

"I still haven't got you back for the KISS thing." He said. A sinister smile grew on his face. Laney felt her face warming up at the word "kiss" but she knew that's not what he meant. A familiar warmth grabbed her wrist, and Laney was being dragged through a crowd. This was beginning to sound like a stuck record.

Surprisingly, there was no line at the ride Laney had been taken to. It looked ancient, and most of the letters had fallen off the sign, so that might have explained the absence of customers. As they stepped towards the ticket booth, two, male, figures appeared behind it.

"Welcome to The Serpent's Lair!" the shorter of the two laughed menacingly. The other held a fog machine. Thick vapours from the machine wrapped around Corey and Laney's ankles. Any illusion was broken when the two figures broke into coughing fits from the smoke then fell out from the booth. It was Kin and Kon sprawled out on the floor.

"Oh, hey guys." the two said simultaneously.

"What are you guys doing here?" asked Laney.

"This ride has been in our family for generations!" said Kin.

While chewing on miscellaneous snacks, Kon added "Our folks wanted us to run it today."

"Now, let's get you two seated." Kin appeared behind Laney and Corey, prompting them into one of the ride's carts by pushing them. Once they were seated, the cart squealed into motion. It headed into the tunnel in front of them, plunging them into darkness as they entered.

-oOoOo-

"-Mina!"

"Huh?" Mina was in a world of her own - which made a nice change from Trina's world. She couldn't hear Trina's shrieking commands as well as she normally could. Trina smacked her across the face with her purse, bringing Mina back to reality. Although Mina had a shiny new bruise to welcome back, she felt better being in the other world.

"You're paying for that, Mina!" Trina said, through gritted teeth.

"Sorry, Trina." Unlucky for her, Mina's glasses didn't break, so she could see the pink-haired girl screaming. Even her braces seemed angry, and angry braces are scary braces. However, Mina wasn't as scared as she usually would be when Trina would explode. Instead, she was curious at why she couldn't remember what, or who, she was daydreaming about. Normally, her daydreams would revolve around being in charge, and having the power to boss Trina around all the time. This one was different. In fact, there were no traces of Trina or her angry braces anywhere. Mina brought a hand to her newly formed bruise but it didn't feel painful. Rather, the area where the purple bruise covered felt, oddly, warm.

"Just a second Trina, I'm going to the bathroom." She needed to cover the bruise with makeup, at least.

"Ugh Mina, you can be so selfish!" puffed Trina, and stormed off to one of the clothing stalls. It was nice that the fair had some decent bathrooms, rather than the generic, and, quite frankly, disgusting portable toilets. This meant that Mina could look at the bruise with the larger mirrors hanging above the sinks, instead of having to use her tiny pocket mirror. She thought that Trina had only given her one bruise. One closer inspection, Mina realised that her other cheek wasn't symmetrically purple. No, it was red. A faint, cherry, red that stood out from her, almost, porcelain skin.

"What in the world-?" Mina tried her hardest to remember what she had been thinking about but to no avail. All she could remember was how seeing blue hair made her chest tighten, and her heart beat faster. Mina desperately tried to get rid of the abnormal colour of cheek, before covering up her bruise. She couldn't. Without her realising, her glasses had fogged up when the redness in her cheeks deepened, and her chest tightened. Mina dashed out of the bathroom, without turning back to take a second look into the mirror.

-oOoOo-

The tunnel was dark. Around them, the sound of dripping liquid echoed. The two teens shuffled in their hard, plastic seats. Corey didn't seem as phased as Laney but it was his idea. Although, he didn't really know what to expect. Judging from the exterior, he thought that it be some people dressed in terrible costumes with the intention of giving them a little spook, if they could even do that. However, Corey was mistaken. The interior was derelict. All living matter, excluding a few rats, had abandoned this space. Neither Corey or Laney could see the rats; only hear them. They could hear their claws scratching along the concrete floors, and the occasional thump when they hit the side of the cart.

"Core?.." Lanet kept facing forwards but her eyes were scanning all the darkness that was in front of them. Slowly, her eyes began to adjust - it wasn't any use. All that happened was that she could see the outlines of the cart, and Corey, a little bit better. There was no response from Corey. She didn't want to turn away from the where the cart was heading, so she leaned over towards where Corey was sitting. To her relief, there was a warm body that she could rest against. Corey was there but didn't make a sound. Instead, he snaked an arm around her waist, and gently pulled her closer.

"Yeah… Revenge." Laney couldn't see but she could definitely tell that he was smirking. She wanted to be mad at him, and she was, but she was a little too frightened. Although, she was slightly glad that he was holding her. The ground began to softly rumble. At first, the two teens didn't think anything of it - until the cart started to shake. They could hear the rats squeak as they scuttled away. The cart was screeching along the tracks as it shook. Corey was a little bit more frightened now; he hadn't expected any of this. As suddenly as it started, the shaking stopped. In the distance there was a faint, flickering light. It illuminated some of the track in from of them but, from what they could see, there was still nothing else in the tunnel. Corey and Laney looked at each other, sharing the same uneasy look.

"Is this supposed to be happening?" Laney's hushed tone, Corey thought, was cute but it wasn't the time to be thinking like that.

"I… have no idea." At this, Corey pulled her a little closer. The same fog from earlier started to pour into their cart. Although, this time is was cold. It covered their bodies in a veil of icy vapour, sending chills through them. Laney started to feel the goosebumps return but not the nice kind from before. The can and the teens passed under the flickering light, and into another, yet larger, room. This time, it was dimly lit - enough so they could, at least, see the walls surrounding them. Two totemic figures stood on a raised platform before them. Their faces were only partially illuminated but Corey and Laney could tell they were looking down on them. Flames exploded upwards from either side of the two figures, and a loud, booming voice came one of them.

"Welcome! To The Serpent's Lair!" Both Corey and Laney could feel their bodies relax slightly, as they recognised the voice.

"Kin?" the two said simultaneously.

"Guys, you ruined the illusion!" he replied, half jokingly. The lights flicked on, and there they were - Kin standing on top of a stage, and Kon chewing, loudly, on something or other. Corey was the first to leave the cart, causing Laney to topple into his seat followed by an "oof!".

"You like this place?" smiled Kin.

"Apart from the… _lovely _entrance, this place looks awesome! It's the perfect place to have a gig!" exclaimed Corey.

Kin leaned in closer and whispered, "Or the perfect place to hold a party..." he pointed over a Laney, who was still trying to recover from her tumble.

"Oh yeah! It's her 18th next week, isn't it?" Corey felt a little bad that he'd forgotten something like that.

"What are you two whispering about?" Laney added, having finally left the cart. She jumped onto the stage with the two boys, and put her hands on her hips.

"We were just laughing at how scared you were." replied Corey. Laney thumped him.

"Rude." All the while this was going one, none of the trio noticed the absence of Kon. Really, he hadn't left. Kon was still standing by them albeit not very still. He was fiddling with the fog machine, muttering about how there were some snacks hidden in there - for some reason. There was a loud clank that came from the machine.

"Oh, snap..." said Kon. Thick fog began to gush out of the metal box, quickly filling the room. None of the teens could see anything, and started to aimlessly walk through the cloud. Corey walked with his arms out to try to not bump into anything but he failed. He collided with someone, knocking the both of them to the floor. It took a minute but the mist finally escaped through the air vents, clearing the room. As it dispersed, Corey found himself on top of someone.

"Please be gentle." Kin said, with a breathy voice. The other two burst out into hysterical laughter. Corey jumped up from his position on the floor, and straightened himself out. The embarrassment was prominent on his face. He pulled Kin aside, setting Kon up for the perfect response.

"Already onto second base, are we?" Laney was wetting herself. So much so, that she made a resounding snort as she tried to hold her sides together. Kin giggled but Corey didn't respond to the remark.

"So, what are we doing about this party?"

_A/N: Much Tease. Very Fluff. It's so much more fun to write than smut. Does that make me a sadist? :P_

_I never plan any chapters I write. I write one chapter and think, "Oh great, now I have to come up with something related to that last bit I added… Why did I set myself a 2000 + word per chapter goal?" Maybe I'm, actually, a masochist… Just like Laney! ;)_

_-STC_


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaim-a-rino: I do not own Grojband. Otherwise, there would be many more episodes. :D

Chapter 3 - Hush Up

Laney was curious about what the other two were talking about in hushed tones. She wanted to go over and find out but Kon prevented her.

"What do you think about this place, Laney?"

"Huh?" She looked around the space. It was dark and decrepit, with ominous lighting. The rats has scurried off before but it seemed as though they were gone for good. "It's alright, I guess. With some work, it could be cool." Laney continued to scan the area, mentally cleaning up the place. In her mind, she imagined the four of them playing here, rather than in Corey's garage. His garage was a great rock-out zone but the constant interruptions from his sister became a huge nuisance. She wondered if Corey's had any luck on thinking up some lyrics for the Mudstock gig. Putting her decoration plans aside, she decided to go over to Kin and Corey - now with some sort of excuse to listen in on their discussion. Kon had gone back to fiddling with the fog machine, not learning from last time. So, Laney didn't feel guilty having left Kon.

Kin noticed Laney walking over to them, and he panicked. "Dude, Laney's coming!" The two boys stopped their conversation, so that none of their plans were revealed. Corey took this opportunity to watch her as she approached. He noticed the way she subconsciously swayed her hips as she walked. God, was it sexy. Although the lighting was poor, he could just about make out her auburn hair. That's one thing that made her just a little bit hotter, no-one else had hair like her. When he saw that she still had the panda face paint on, he broke out of his daydream. He, then, realised that he still looked like a rejected KISS member, and he sighed to himself.

"Hey guys, what are you talking about?" she asks, not really expecting them to tell the truth.

"I was just asking what the deal with your guys' faces was." Kin replies. "I figured that you guys were into some weird stuff, so I didn't really think about it too much." Although it was a nice save, Corey couldn't help but feel embarrassed at the comment.

"Dude!" Corey said, giving him a pointed look. Laney, on the other hand, had a sly grin on her face.

"You don't have to be embarrassed, Core." She fluttered her eyelashes, "I mean, it was your idea after all." She pressed up against him, looking for a reaction. Even though she was extremely flustered from what she was doing, she tried to keep in character. It seemed to be working.

"_What a minx…" _Corey thought to himself. He could feel the heat in his cheeks rise as did his embarrassment. He looked down to see her hands clutching his top, and he noticed how small they were. It seemed strange to him, considering she was a bass player, but he wasn't complaining. They were cute. An idea struck him, and he decided to turn the tables.

"I can't take all the credit, Lanes." He ran a hand through her scruffy hair, "There was a _certain_ panda who was there to encourage me." He continued, in an increasingly sultry voice. To top everything off, he gently bopped her on the nose. She couldn't do it anymore; she melted. Both Kin and Kon (who was on the other side of the stage) let out an audible sigh.

"Just get together already!" The two teens were caught off guard by the comment. They made eye contact, and shared reddening of cheeks before releasing each other. "Seriously, it's like there's someone purposefully torturing us through you two." All four teens, momentarily, looked in the same direction, as if to break the fourth-wall.

"Well, if we're going to make this our 'lair', we'd better start cleaning." said Corey, effectively changing the subject.

-oOoOo-

Trina, and Mina had successfully caught up with 'hunky' Nick Mallory. In addition, Mina has done well in concealing the hideous bruise on her cheek but still didn't understand what was happening to her. Why where her cheeks red? Why did she feel hot? And why did her glasses fog up? These were all questions she was asking herself, and yet couldn't find answers for any of them. Although, Trina had paid no attention to Mina's troubles. Her focus was on being a sheep - by liking what Nick liked. She was the type of sheep to fawn over those higher in the pecking order. Usually, it resulted in her being disappointed, and being mothered by Mina (not that Trina would be appreciative of it). The three of them walked by an, ancient-looking, attraction. They saw a horde of rats scurrying away out of it.

"Ugh, these old rides are, like, totally gross, and junk."

"Nick Mallory likes these old rides. It remind Nick of old people, and the fun they used to have." He added, in his breathy, yet monotone, voice.

"Yeah! I, totally, think that too!" Squealed Trina, completely contradicting her previous statement.

"Does that mean you want to go inside, Trina?" Mina finally spoke up. She tried to suggest it in a way that wouldn't show how she was salty about Trina giving her the bruise on her face.

"What a good idea, Mina." She replied through gritted teeth. "Let's go, Nick!" Her tone took a cheerful turn, as she linked arms with Nick and dragged him along. Mina sighed.

Inside the tunnel was darkness. They trudged through mud, and climbed over tracks that had partially sunken into it. Despite their discomfort, they continued on through the tunnel. Trina still clung to Nick's arm, while Mina trailed behind. After a few minutes of walking in the dark, a dull light came into their sight. The light was faint, so it was difficult for the to make out.

"Trina, I've lost my shoe in the mud." She had. Mina was now walking around with only one shoe on, and her tight had become caked in mud.

"Nobody cares, Mina." Nick tried to turn back to offer a sympathetic look but he was promptly pulled back by Trina. For whatever reason, today Trina's remarks angered Mina more that usual. She stomped harder as she walked but that turned out to be a bad idea. The mud splattered up her legs, and the icy water made her entire body shudder. She needed a change of clothes. There was no way she was going to be able to get any, unless she left the fair to go home.

Nick was pretty sure that Trina had broken his arm but he continued trudging onward. He looked down to notice that the tracks were ending, and that the mud started to harden. As they got closer to the light, the voices grew louder. The trio came to the end of the tunnel, and walked into the light. After being briefly blinded, Trina's expression quickly turned to one of annoyance.

"Ugh, it's just my geeky brother, and his lame friends." Mina perked up at the mention of Corey. However, she didn't know why she did. Mina, also, didn't know why her glasses fogged up.

"Cool room. Nick could totally see Nick hanging here… with a few improvements." The four band members turned to see those standing by the entrance.

"Corey, what's your sister doing here?"

"It's unlikely but maybe she wanted to go on the ride, Lanes. It is a fair after all. Although, I can't say that I want her to be here either…" Laney sighs.

"If you want, we can get rid of her. Nudge, nudge. Wink, Wink." Kin added.

"Depending on how she is, let's call that Plan B." Nick walked over to them, with Trina still clinging on for dear life. Mina, apprehensively, followed.

"Sweet place you got here."

"Yeah, she's a fixer-upper." Corey replied.

"Nick can respect that. Just make sure Nick's "on the list". Out of the corner of his eye, Corey noticed how Mina was standing a little further back from his sister and Nick. He saw how she was shivering.

"Be right back, Nick". He left Nick, his sister, and the other band members in an awkward silence. "Are you alright, Mina?" Mina had been daydreaming. So when Corey started talking to her, she jolted.

"Huh? Yeah, just a little cold." She rubbed her arm bashfully.

"There should be a back room with some heating. I'll show you." As they started walking towards a murky door, only Laney noticed the two leaving. Somehow, Kin, Kon, and Nick had started a really tedious conversation about cheese.

In the back room there were a couple of crude chairs, a sofa, and a run down kitchen. Seeing as it was the most structurally sound, Mina decided to sit on the couch. Corey, on the other hand, went over to the kitchen. From out of the cupboards, Corey pulled two mugs, and then turned on the half-filled kettle.

"So, what's with the…" Corey pointed towards Mina's mud soaked leg.

"There isn't a solid path to walk on in that tunnel." She didn't make eye contact with him. Instead, Mina was looking into her lap while twiddling her thumbs.

"I'm not sure if Lanes has a change of clothes on her but I should have some spare shorts in my bag. You could change into those, if you want." Corey said this as if it didn't matter but, to Mina, it did. She struggled for words, as her glasses started to fog up.

"Y-yeah… Sure." Corey tossed her the dark shorts, and resumed making their drinks. Mina's eyes scanned the room to look for somewhere private to change but there weren't; the only exit lead into the main room where everyone else was. "Uh, Corey? Can you…" He turned around, confused at first. Corey soon realised her predicament.

"Yep, yep, yep. Just let me know when it's okay to come back in." He gave her a warm smile, before leaving the room. As the door closed behind him, Corey turned to see Laney standing surprisingly close. "Woah there, Lanes." She'd almost bumped into him trying to open the door.

"Sorry, Core. I was just getting a drink. I don't think I could take another minute on the 'greatness of gouda'."

"I wouldn't go in there just yet. Mina's getting changed." At this, Laney raised an eyebrow.

"Core… why is Mina getting _changed _in the backroom?" Corey hesitated with his answer. Laney pushed past him, and barged into the room.

"Lanes, wait!" However, when she entered the room she saw Mina standing by the kitchen.

"Oh, hey guys. I'd finished changing but the kettle had boiled. So, I finished making the drinks." Mina gave the two younger teens a cheerful smile that neither had seen in a long time. She brought the steaming mugs to the table that the seats where surrounding. As she bent over to place the migs down, both Corey and Laney had noticed Mina's figure. She was older than them, so it shouldn't have been such a surprise to them. However, neither of the could have expected her to have such a feminine figure, as Trina was the one noticed for this kind of thing. Corey found himself at a lost for words, but Laney was more focused on the familiarly coloured shorts that Mina was wearing.

"Mina, how did you find a change of clothes in this place?" Laney half-joked, already knowing the answer.

"Corey helped me out." For whatever reason, this answer angered Laney more than it should have. "Sorry Laney. If I knew you were coming, I would have poured you a drink too."

"No, it's fine. I'll just grab one from the vending machine." Through slightly gritted teeth, she replied. Corey and Mina sat on the soda beside each other, while Laney stood in front of the vending machine. Choosing a drink didn't take long, as there wasn't much choice from the - almost empty - vending machine. So when she sat down, Laney had sandwiched Corey between the two girls. The air was filled with an awkward silence until Laney had cracked open her can. The loud hissing seemed to have been amplified. Laney looked over at Mina, who was taking a sip from her hot drink, and couldn't help but feel a little jealous. She wondered what it was like wearing Corey's shorts, but she quickly shook that thought out of her head. Mina, on the other hand, couldn't see what she was doing - her glasses had fogged up from the drink.

"I'm going to wash my face." As he said this, Corey stood from up from the couch. Laney was a little bit disappointed that he wasn't going to keep the face paint of longer, but she had to admit that it did look ridiculous. Corey walked over to the sink. There were cleaner places in the world but it would have to do; the paint was starting to smear anyway. Back on the sofa, Corey had left his hat, and it acted a barrier between two girls. Both were looking at Corey bending over the sink, and they saw how his shirt had started to ride up his back. The sound of water being splashed on his face, and running into the plug hole, was the only sound in that room. Mina and Laney glanced at each other. In those few moments, the two shared a similar look; softly bitten lips, glazed over eyes, and their cheeks stained with a faint rouge. Before they knew it, Corey had turned off the tap and had turned around. His hair was damp, and some loose hairs clung to his face. Although quiet, there was an audible noise when they let out the breath they were holding. This time, when Corey sat on the sofa, he sat all the way back, and let his arms hang behind the sofa. Laney and Mina shuffled in their seats. They kept their eyes down, and their hands in their laps.

There came a loud stomping from the other room, and, suddenly, the door burst open.

"Mina!" Trina's shrill voice rang through everyone's ears. "We're leaving!" Steam seemed to be venting from Trina's nose. Apparently, she couldn't take listening to the 'greatness of gouda' any longer either. Mina jumped up from her seat, and followed Trina through the door. She looked back at the teens sitting on the sofa one more time, giving them a small smile. Corey quickly glanced at Mina's figure as she left, before slouching back onto the couch. He turned towards Laney, who was watching Mina leave, and examined hers. Laney had relaxed into the sofa too, but it didn't hide her femininity. He had rolled his head to look at her, and she had done the same.

"Well, that was… fun." Corey joked. Laney shifted her whole body so she was facing him completely.

"How are the lyrics coming along, Core?"

"Ugh… I haven't been really… There have been other things on my mind." Corey ran his fingers through his hair, although some of his hair had fallen back onto his face.

"Corey, we _really _need lyrics. Mudstock is only a few weeks away… What could be more important than that right now?" Corey didn't answer. He felt bad that he hadn't been thinking about lyrics, but he couldn't tell Laney what he had been thinking. Instead, he just gazed into her eyes and tried to look sympathetic. It worked. Laney's expression softened. Only now did she notice that they were alone. Normally, this wouldn't have bothered her but it's been a long time since she's seen Corey without his hat. It'd been a even _longer _time since Laney had seen him with wet hair. Her chest had tightened, and her breaths became shorter.

"Guys, fairs' closing." Kin had been standing in the doorway with a knowing smirk stretching across his face - not that they would have noticed. His voice startled them, and the two of them bumped heads.

"Ow…" They said simultaneously. Corey and Laney looked at Kin then back at each other; they laughed.

_A/N - I'm a little late on the update and I apologise. The last week or so has been… eventful. Honestly, I've had a teeny-tiny bit of writer's block - sue me. Don't actually…_

_-STC_


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Grojband.

Chapter 4 - Social Scheming

It had been almost a week since they group decided to refurbish the fair ride. Nevertheless, they had made good progress. The band were still going for a murky vibe, but they wanted it to be cleaner. They had removed a lot of the debris that had cluttered the floor, put in green mood lighting, and, most importantly, the band had improved the pitiful conditions of their backroom. The tunnel needed a few more improvements and then it would be finished.

Kin, Kon, and Corey had been discussing plans for Laney's party while she wasn't around. They, too, were close to having all their preparations together.

"So, all we need to do now is get Laney here tonight without her getting suspicious…" said Kon.

"Dude, this is _Laney _we're talking about. She's always suspicious about the things we do!" Kin added.

"Yeah, that's true." He sighs, "I'm sure that there's someone who can get her here easily." At this, Kin gives him a pointed look.

"So, you don't know who could, _possibly_, be the person to get her to come along tonight?"

"Well, no."

"Dude… just…" Now it was Kin's turn to sigh. "You do it, since you're such a good _friend _to her. Now, be a dear and grab me a drink from the back." Kin, jokingly, batted his eyelids.

"And me!" Kon added.

"Sure, sure. Something cold?"

"You know it!" the two chimed.

While walking to the backroom, Corey's mind ran on autopilot. He was completely zoned out. Perhaps it was recent the hard work they'd put into renovating the place, but all Corey knew was that he was exhausted. To be honest, he didn't know if he'd return with the drinks if the new couch proved to be too comfortable. The refrigerator in the back was quite small, so Corey had to bend to get a good look inside. However, once he stuck his head inside it was bliss. No longer could he feel the fatigue that had been building up in his muscles, nor did he want to fall asleep. If he could stay there a little while longer he would have been content, but those two were waiting. He closed the fridge with three chilled cans in his grasp. Corey turned and saw the new couch. This new one was made of leather, in contrast to the old fabric one. There weren't any springs protruding from the seats, and there weren't any ominous stains in weird places.

"I don't think anyone would mind if I were to break in the new couch." He smiled to himself, and placed the cans on the coffee table. Jumping onto the sofa made a loud noise, so Corey was glad no-one else was in the room. Lying back on the sofa gave him some time to think. He wondered how he was going to get Laney to agree to tonight without her getting suspicious. Corey sighed to himself, yet again. He rested his head on the cool leather of the arm rest. His head became hazy, and his eyes became heavy. Now he could feel himself dozing off. Slowly, Corey sucumb to the comfort of the leather.

After ten minutes, the twins decided to look for Corey. While he was gone, they'd continued to finish off the renovations, and, boy, was it tiring. They made their way to the back room, and upon opening the door they saw the missing boy. Sprawled across the sofa was an unconscious Corey, with his face sparkling from a pool of his own saliva.

"Let's just grab the drinks and get out of here." Kon whispered.

"Yeah, but I think there is someone who'd like to see this." Kin added with a smirk. His brother arched a curious eyebrow at him, but shrugged it off. He proceeded to tip-toe into the room and over to the coffee table - where the drinks had been sitting. Kin, on the other hand, had ventured off to retrieve a certain someone. When the brothers had finished their tasks, they met in the doorway of the backroom. Kon had the cans with him, whereas Kin had Laney.

"What's this all about?" Laney whined.

"Shh, keep your voice down!" said Kin. Kon had already cracked open one of the drinks, and had been guzzling it down, gulping loudly.

"Huh?" Before any other sounds came from her, Laney was pushed through the doorway. The sound of the door clicking shut was the last thing the two left her with. She let out an exasperated sigh. Laney ran her hand through her auburn hair, before walking over to the sink to splash some cold water on her face. It was colder than she expected, and she could feel the goosebumps start to form at the base of her neck. When she turned around she, also, saw the body laying on the couch, gently snoring away. Laney smiled to herself.

"So this is why they wanted me to be quiet, eh?." she mumbled under her breath. Laney, then, noticed the last can sitting on the table. The condensation had cause the water droplets to form a puddle on the coaster, but it had started to spill onto the wooden table top. She picked up the can from the pool in had been sitting in, and perched herself onto the table; sitting to face the sleeping mass. The can was no longer as cold as what it would have been if it was left in the fridge, but it would have to do. Although she wanted to watch him sleep for a while, there were still things that Corey needed to help with in the main room. A sinister smile spread itself across Laney's face. She placed a hand - cold from the can - onto Corey's cheek. Unfazed by the new sensation on his face, Corey continued to slumber. However, he turned away from her. Instead, he nestled himself further into the leather.

"Looks like this needs more drastic measures… You did this to yourself, Core." She didn't feel guilty for a single moment as she lifted up the back of his shirt, and placed both her damp hands on the bare skin of his back. Laney could feel his body starting to shiver. As the goosebumps started to form, it was as if something was building up in him before the final eruption.

"Ah! -the Hell?" he shouted. Corey jumped up from where he had been laying. His mind slowed down as he realised that the hands on his back were strangely… _feminine. _"Lanes? What are you doing?" As he turned to face her, she pressed the can against his cheek.

"Drink up. You're supposed to be helping us in the front. Lord knows that the other two won't _actually _be doing anything productive alone." Laney gave him a cheeky smile before making her way over to the fridge herself. Although she wasn't as tall as Corey, she still had to bend to see what the refrigerator shelves had on them. This left Corey with his mouth ajar - gaping at the sight of Laney's figure.

"Yeah… She's definitely eighteen now…" he thought to himself. She couldn't seen him from behind the fridge door, so she assumed the loud gulping sound was him drinking the soda. It was a surprise to her when she heard the can cracking open. That day had been reasonable warm, so Laney decided to grab more than one can - a couple for herself and an additional one for Corey. As her hands were full, she swung her hips to close the fridge door behind her.

"That doesn't mean we can't enjoy ourselves a little longer, does it?" she winked at Corey then she dropped into the seat beside him. Two of the three cans sat on more coasters on the table, and the can in her hands opened with an audible hiss. Corey wasn't sure if the bead of liquid travelling down her neck was sweat or water, but it didn't matter to him. He was entranced. Corey watched as Laney downed her first can. A small trickle of liquid escaped from the side of lips, and the glistening soda made its way to the base of her chin. She slammed the empty can onto the table, and wiped her chin.

"Ow, my head." She had drank it too fast, and Corey could help but laugh.

"Lanes…"

"Hm?"

"You want to hang out tonight? I, er, got some drinks in the fridge." It took her a moment to realise what he was talking about, but then remembered that she had seen some _adult _beverages when she was grabbing the cans.

"Drinks? We're only 18…"

"Yeah but it'll be your first. Wouldn't you rather have it with a friend, like me?" At this, Laney could feel her face heat up.

She thought to herself, "Did he purposefully word that sentence weirdly or is it just me?" She shook it off, and gave him an answer. "Y-yeah, I guess."

"Great! I'll come over later!" Corey stood up, took his other can from the table, and walked towards the door. "Now to finish the rest of the decorations…" he mumbled to himself.

_A/N - Sorry for the delay! College is just… I've got a few weeks to fix the things that the tutors have messed up. Unlike some of the other students, I actually want to go to the second year; maybe be put in a class without some of the students I've been stuck with. _

_This is also the reason that this chapter is a little shorter (about half) than the previous chapters. Anyway, leave your feedback in the form of PMs, reviews, or public displays of grandeur… actually, scratch the last one. _

_-STC_

_P.S. I'll try to get the next one out within next week or so._


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Grojband.

Chapter 5 - Adult Drinks at an "Adult" Party

Corey had kept his promise. He had shown up at Laney's place that night. However, he forgot to tell her what time he'd be over. So when Corey did show up at 7pm that night, Laney was hardly ready. Laney's folks had already thrown her a smaller party earlier that day, but between then and now Laney had been in full relax mode. He stood in the doorway dressed as he always was, casually, but there was something different about him that Laney couldn't pick up on.

"I guess you're not quite ready yet, Lanes." He smirked slightly. Laney looked down at herself, and realised that she was still in her pyjamas. She tried to play it cool around Corey, but, truth be told, she was embarrassed.

"Yeah, sorry about that. Come in, I'll just be a few." Corey followed her into her house - a place he'd been many times prior. He took a seat on one of the living room sofas, and watched as Laney scurried up the stairs.

"I always knew she was the pyjama type…" He realised what he said as soon as he had said it, and he could feel his cheeks changing colour at the thought. Corey sank into the seat, trying to hide himself from being seen in that state. The longer he sat there the more he realised that the house was very quiet. He could occasionally hear someone, who he presumed to be Laney, shuffling around upstairs, but apart from that the house was near silent.

After sitting in her living room in eerie quietness for five minutes, Corey called out to Laney.

"So, are your parents out or something?"

"Yeah." Her voice came from upstairs. "They left a little while before you arrived."

"Oh. Does that mean we're the only ones in your house?" He doesn't know why he asked that. It just slipped out.

"Y-yeah, I guess it does…" Nothing was said after this, but Laney tried to hurry herself with the thought of it only being them two in her house - alone. She didn't know why it made her as jittery as it did, they used to spend a lot of time at each other's houses, and even then there were only butterflies in her stomach. Maybe it was because they were both eighteen now... She shook her head in an attempt to remove the thoughts from her mind.

Laney stood in front of her mirror, hardly dressed, with a guy just downstairs - Corey no less. She wanted to finished getting dressed as quick as she could but she couldn't decide what she wanted to wear. Would it be out of place to dress up? They were only hanging out together… alone and after dark.

"Is this a date? I don't think so. if it was, wouldn't he take me somewhere… else?" She smiled to herself at the thought of Corey taking her on a date; her first date.

"Lanes? You ready?" His voice made her jump, as it sounded louder than before. She heard soft knocking on her bedroom door. "Lanes?"

"D-don't come in! I'll be out in a second!" She panicked. Laney threw on some clean, casual clothes that had been lying around, and spritzed herself with some of her perfume. When she opened the door she was met with Corey standing very close. Laney almost bumped into him. Corey, on the other hand, was hit a wave of the fragrance that soaked Laney's room - not that he was complaining. Subconsciously, he inhaled a little harder than usual. He really did like that smell. Although, he couldn't place the it. Why was it so memorable?

"Y-yeah, I'm ready now." She still didn't make eye contact with him, keeping her head straight forward. Some of her fringe had covered her face because she didn't have time to even think about it. So, Corey ran a hand through her hair, pushing it out of her face. She finally realised what was different. It seemed he forgot to shave, and there was a faint shadow on his face. Somehow, it didn't make him look as old as she thought it would.

"Well, let's go then." He left her with a smile, before making his way downstairs. Laney followed close behind.

-oOoOoOo-

Even though it was dark, it was still warm. So, Laney was grateful that they were going for drinks at their new den, and walking through the tunnel wasn't as bad as it used to be. Somehow, the band had installed a physical pathway so no-one had to trudge through mud to get to the main room. However, when the two got into the main room all the lights were off. Although the lights should have been off at this hour, the lights of the tunnel were on. Laney shrugged it off. She was just wanted to sit down, and hang out with Corey - but was still apprehensive about the alcohol. The generator made loud whirring noises as it turned on the lights. The room was empty. Perhaps someone just left the lights on from earlier. She continued to follow Corey through to the back room, where she sat straight onto the sofa. Laney saw Corey head straight for the fridge, and heard the clinking of the bottles he grabbed.

"Today, I will be here when you become an adult." He handed her the beverage, before taking the seat next to her.

"D-do you hear what you're saying?"

"Huh?"

"Nothing." She twists the cap off, and starts to take sips of the bitter liquid. Corey watched as her face scrunched up.

"Like this." He opened his then proceeded to take large gulps, emptying half the bottle. Laney looked at Corey, then back at her bottle.

"Uh?" She took a swig from her bottle. Laney spluttered as the alcohol hit the back of her throat. Now her bottle was half empty too, and she could feel her head getting slightly dizzy. "Is my head supposed to feel… like this?"

"How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Three?"

"Three?"

With her final response, she pouted "Three." The look of seriousness lingered on her face a little while longer, but then Laney couldn't help but giggle.

"You haven't even finished one, and there's six left…" Corey sighed at the realisation that they were going to get quite drunk.

Twenty minutes and three beers later, the two teens were very much drunk. Corey had been shoved off the couch, multiple times, by Laney. She now hogged the entire thing, and he had to make-do with the wooden coffee table. Although, he wanted to sit by the drinks so Laney couldn't get any worse than she already was.

"-nd there was this bass that was _so _ nice! It just felt like… Pa-cha!" she was waving her arms around, and her drink sloshed around in the bottle. Corey was partially listening to her, partially thinking about when the other guys would show up, but he was mostly observing the way she was sitting. The alcohol was definitely making her unwind. No longer was she rigid in the way she sat. Her curves were more accentuated, but her clothes seemed baggier. Auburn hair attacked her face; it was a constant battle. Corey, sort of, didn't want the other guys to show up. He was the first to see her like this, and he wanted it all for himself. "-nother one!"

"Huh?"

"Pass me another one!" she whined. Corey noticed that she hadn't even finished the one in her hand, so he sat on the couch beside her.

"I think that you've had enough for now. Have some water or something." Laney threw herself over him. The alcohol splashed them, but she didn't seem to notice.

"B-but, it's my birthday!"

"True, but look what it's making you do." She looked down to see herself on top of Corey, clutching her beverage in one hand, and holding his shirt with the other. Laney could feel her cheeks warming up, and she jumped up off of him.

"S-sorry." She slurred. Corey re-adjusted himself next to her, and pushed the remaining hair out of her face.

"You're allowed to have fun, but you don't want to be doing that to some random guy." He chuckled,

"But you're not just some random guy…" she mumbled. A loud crashing sound startled the two. It seemed to becoming from the main room. Corey put down his drink, stood up, and beckoned for Laney to follow. Both of the walked through the door into the other room, with Corey leading the way. He disappeared into the darkness, and left Laney to walk in by herself. Hushed whispers and quiet shuffling was the only thing she could hear.

"Corey?" No response. "Core-" Before she could finish, a spot light illuminated a figure on the stage. It's dazzling brightness almost blinded here. Accompanying it, was a thin layer of fog that Laney remembered Kon messing around with last week. Dimmer lights also lit up the other figures on the stage. In total there were three people: Corey, Kin, and Kon.

"It's a very special lady's birthday today!" Corey voice blared through the speakers, and the crowd of people standing by the stage went wild. Another light showed Laney standing right at the back of the crowd. "And we have the pleasure of playing the opening song to her party."

It took about five minutes for them to play the first song, but it was five minutes of awesome. Laney was still a little tipsy from before, however it didn't stop her from fully enjoying what her friends had done for her. After the song had finished, Corey was the first to jump off the stage to greet the birthday girl. The other two had their hands full being swarmed by a horde of new found groupies. Bringing with him some of the fog, and a brow drenched in sweat, Corey pushed past the sea of people. Laney didn't want to try to get lost in the crowd, so she stayed near the back room. This made it easier for Corey to spot her. Just as they get close to each other, another band started playing.

"Hey!" Corey had to shout to be able to hear himself, let alone for Laney to him.

"Hey!"

"Is this party awesome or what?"

"Yeah, it's super cool! Thanks for doing this..." A smile grew on Corey face, and he grabbed her hand.

"Let's go dance!" Before she could say anything, he was pulling her into the crowd of sweating bodies. Laney was apprehensive at first, but once she got going there was no stopping them.

They danced together for half an hour or so before they got too hot and sweaty.

"Do you want to get some drinks?" Corey watched as beads of sweat trailed down her skin; some of her hair had stuck to her face. "Corey?"

"Huh? Yeah. Let's go." This time, Laney lead the way back. There were more people that they were used to crowded around their door, but none of them looked like that wanted to go in - they were too busy enjoying the party. Although the room muffled the noise of the music, it wasn't completely quiet like it was before. However, there were still some alcohol left in the fridge. So, Laney brought over the remaining bottles, placing them on the coffee table before sitting on the couch.

"Ah! My legs feel like they're about to fall off." Corey grabbed them towels, and then sat beside her.

"We're spending a lot of time her aren't we? I mean, do we ever hang out at the garage anymore?"

"I guess… but that's not a bad thing, is it?"

"Hm, maybe it's just nostalgia…"

"I think it's the people you spend time with, rather than the venue. Aren't we- I good enough, Core?" Laney jested.

"Lanes, there isn't anyone else I'd rather be kicking back, and drinking with." As if on queue, someone stumbled through the door.

"Mina?" The two said simultaneously.

"Oh, hi guys. It's a little bit crowded out there, you know?"

"Yeah, we came in here for drinks. You want one?" Laney replied. Mina eyed the couple of bottles sitting on the table - condensation dripping down its side. Being in the other room for so long did make her thirsty, but, like Laney, she was unsure about alcohol.

"Is it okay?"

"If you want one, you can have one. Lord knows that Laney shouldn't be having anymore." Corey shot her a cheeky look, and Laney playfully pushed him. Mina didn't want to be rude, so she sat on the sofa with Corey and Laney. "It's a twisty top." The bottle opened with a hiss in her hands. As she took the first refreshing sip, the bitter fluid made her tongue tingle. The more sips she took, her cheeks became ever more so red. Until, the bottle was more than half empty.

"I guess you like it, then." Corey chuckled. Mina hiccuped. She could feel herself getting light headed, so she leaned back into the leather of the sofa. She tilted her head to face Laney.

"Happy Birthday by the way." She smiled.

"Thanks." There hadn't been a lot of people who'd wished her happy birthday today, so she got a bit embarrassed. What was really curious was the fact that Corey had said it yet. Laney, nonchalantly, looked over at Corey - almost expecting him to say the same. Yet, he was too occupied with, slowly, watching Mina get drunker.

"Come to think of it, you haven't been here since it'd been refurbished."

"No. This couch is definitely more comfortable." As she said this, she shuffled in her seat, and Mina cozied up to Corey. Laney knew this was because Mina had gotten tipsy, but that didn't stop her from getting a little jealous.

"You're right, it is comfortable." Laney copied Mina, and cozied up to the other side of Corey. He was a little uncomfortable in the current situation, but he couldn't really complain - two _very _ pretty girls were linking arms with him. However, he didn't want his teenage hormones to take over. Corey lunged for the remaining bottles on the table, twisted the caps of them, and started to down them as quickly as he could. The two girls just sat there staring at him, half amazed and half confused. After the bottles had been drained, he let out a gassy burp.

"Ow. I think I drank that too fast..."

"Why'd you drink both of them, Core?"

"Both of you can't handle your alcohol. You girls might do something reckless if you drink too much." Laney nestled her face into Corey, trying to hide her embarrassment. Mina, on the other hand, just kept staring into space. She wasn't looking at anything in particular because her glasses had fogged up when Corey said "do something reckless". No words were shared between the trio. It wasn't completely silent because of the thumping music coming from the main room. They could occasionally hear the muffled shrieks from, who could only be, Trina. Corey sighed. He got up from his seat, and headed towards the small kitchen. Laney had been still attached to him when he left, so she was caught off guard at the sudden movement. She sat on the edge of the couch, with her hands in her lap and twiddled her thumbs. Mina just sat there, quietly giggling to herself. Her glasses were still fogged, but now her cheeks had become more pink rather than red. Laney was curious why Mina was giggling, however she became distracted when she looked over at Corey. The sound of the tap running was louder than the chattering of the people next door, but Laney was focusing on something else. She noticed how his undershirt had become untucked at the back. She was warm in the baggy stuff she was wearing, so it must have been worse for him.

Laney could feel her head getting hazy, her eyes heavy, and she started to sweat. She didn't know if it was the heat of the party, or the alcohol finally hitting her, but she found herself failing to concentrate on anything. She wanted to sleep, dance, and continue to stare at Corey all at the same time. Full glasses of water clinked as they were set on the table; it was enough to startle her. Both Laney and Mina looked up, and were met with the boy smiling at them warmly.

"I think we all need these. The night's still young, and we don't want to miss anything. I bet everyone's wondering where we are."

_A/N - I think that I'll try to upload a new chapter every Monday. Maybe one day they'll play their gig. I just feel like the other characters are being neglected; should there be side stories with the other characters? Let me know what you think._

_P.S. I appreciate the comments such as "I like this fic" or "PLEASE MAKE MOAROAORAORAAR ! (More)" but they don't help me to make my chapters better. By all means, tell how great I am but don't be afraid to critique me. :D_


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